Children's Minnesota Foundation board welcomes three new members

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MINNEAPOLIS, Aug. 3, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Children's Minnesota is pleased to announce the appointments of Jay Cavanagh, Steve Hockett and Thomas Keller, III, to its Foundation board. These new members will join the Foundation board as passionate advocates of pediatric health, leading with the Children's Minnesota vision to be every family's essential partner in raising healthier children. Their important work will help ensure every child in the region has access to the highest quality health care available while providing resources for innovation, research and education to help Children's Minnesota advance care nationally.

"We are thrilled for these accomplished community leaders to join the Foundation board," said Theresa Pesch, RN, president of the Children's Minnesota Foundation. "The board plays an indispensable role in our efforts to secure the engagement and support of community partners to focus on serving all kids and families, throughout childhood, when and where they need us. As we welcome these new members, I'm confident their commitment and leadership will help Children's Minnesota continue to advance pediatric health throughout the region."

With different levels of community, business and volunteer experience, the new board members bring a multitude of knowledge and expertise to the Children's Minnesota Foundation:

Jay Cavanagh, Managing Partner, Wealth Transfer, The KNW Group:Jay Cavanagh is a co-founder of The KNW Group and a managing partner in the Wealth Transfer Division, focusing on sophisticated wealth transfer issues involving life insurance for individuals, families and family offices. By listening and gaining a clear understanding of a client's personal and business goals, Mr. Cavanagh is able to help preserve wealth and transfer assets to support subsequent generations, business succession or charities. Mr. Cavanagh is a registered representative and an investment advisor representative with Kestra Investment Services, LLC. A graduate of St. John's University (Collegeville, MN) in 1991 with a degree in economics, he holds Series 6 (Investment Company Products/Variable Contracts Limited Representative), 7 (General Securities Representative), 63 (Uniform Securities Agent State Law Exam) and 65 (Uniform Investment Adviser Law Exam) securities registration, as well as life, health and variable annuity insurance licenses in several states. Mr. Cavanagh is very active in the community. In addition to serving on the Children's Minnesota Foundation board, he is a member of the Partners Financial Advisory board of directors and the Mount Olivet Board of Life & Growth. He is a previous member of the Children's Minnesota Legacy Advisors board. His continued commitment to Children's Minnesota stems from the hospital system's extraordinary patient care and dedication to educating the community to drive support for prevention, treatment and innovation. Mr. Cavanagh, his wife Betsy and their two children live in Edina, MN.

Steve Hockett, President, Great Clips, Inc.:Steve Hockett has spent over 20 years with Great Clips, Inc. in three separate segments, serving in various positions from franchise owner to president. He has worked extensively in Great Clips' marketing and operations departments and was heavily involved in the massive growth of the system from 150 units when he joined as a franchisee, to today, as the largest hair care brand in the United States with over 4,000 operating salons. Prior to rejoining Great Clips in 2008, Mr. Hockett was president of Rapid Refill Corp., franchised retail stores offering retail and commercial print solutions; and FranChoice, Inc., the premier network of franchise referral consultants. Mr. Hockett serves on the board of governors for Hazeltine National Golf Club, and is a member of the executive committee. In addition, he serves on the board of Holy Family Catholic High School and has been a member of the finance committee for 14 years. Joining the Children's Minnesota Foundation board provides an opportunity for him to give back to the organization and the broader community. In addition, it serves as a way to say "thank you" for the tremendous care and treatment of his daughter in 1990 when she had emergency surgery at age two and spent 30 days at Children's Minnesota in St. Paul.

Thomas Keller, III, Principal, Gray Plant Mooty:Thomas Keller, III has more than 50 years of experience in his practice, representing clients in a wide range of industries including financial, utilities, manufacturing, service, health care and medical technology – varying in size from small businesses to multinational Fortune 500 corporations. Mr. Keller assisted clients with mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, executive compensation, contracts, financing, license agreements, securities and employment matters. He regularly served as special master for the U.S. District Court in matters regarding complex corporate litigation. Mr. Keller is heavily involved in community organizations around the Twin Cities and nationwide whose missions promote social justice; public health and medical research; support for theater, opera and creative writing; and services and employment for the poor and persons with disabilities. He has become involved with Children's Minnesota because of its commitment to finding more effective ways of diagnosing and treating kids and adolescents with eating disorders.

"Because of the support from our dedicated Foundation board, Children's Minnesota can continue to raise the standard for pediatric health and deliver a care experience unlike any other," said Pesch.

With the new and renewing board members, the 2016 Foundation board includes the following members:

Greg Goven, chair

Russell Becker, vice chair

Patricia Comeford Adams

Hayes Batson

Karen Benz

Gary Blackford

Jay Cavanagh

Michael Ciresi

Shannon Evenstad

Greg Frankenfield

Lynn Freeman

Scott Gill

Steve Hockett

Thomas Keller, III

Irv Kessler

Matt Majka

Charles Maxwell, Jr.

David Miller

Donna Roback

Patrick Ryan

Sharyl Sicoli

Judith Wright

Robert Bonar, Jr., Dr. H.A.

Theresa Pesch

About Children's MinnesotaChildren's Minnesota is one of the largest pediatric health systems in the United States and the only health system in Minnesota to provide care exclusively to children, from before birth through young adulthood. An independent and not-for-profit system since 1924, Children's Minnesota serves kids throughout the Upper Midwest at two free-standing hospitals, 12 primary and specialty-care clinics and six rehabilitation sites. Children's Minnesota maintains its longstanding commitment to the community to improve children's health by providing high-quality, family-centered pediatric services and advancing those efforts through research and education. This work is made possible in large part by generous philanthropic and volunteer support from individuals and organizations throughout the state and region. An award-winning health system, Children's Minnesota is regularly ranked by U.S. News & World Report as a top children's hospital and by The Leapfrog Group for quality and efficiency. Please visit childrensMN.org.

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